Some officials leery of proposed road on Norriego Point

DESTIN — It may be a bumpy road ahead for Norriego Point as the city tries to transform the ever shrinking spit of land into a park.

MATT ALGARIN / The Destin Log

DESTIN — It may be a bumpy road ahead for Norriego Point as the city tries to transform the ever shrinking spit of land into a park.

“I was a little shocked to see a road,” Destin City Councilman Jim Bagby told his colleagues at a recent meeting.

During a workshop last week, council members were presented with the Norriego Point Management Plan, which details how the park would grow and be managed.

The plan calls for Destin to add amenities such as a picnic pavilion, an interpretive trail with signage to promote protection of the dunes, and two embayments for additional water-related activities and boat/kayak parking.

Bike racks, an access road and parking spaces, underground utilities, trash cans, drinking fountains and restrooms at the pavilion also are listed.

The price tag would be about $690,000.

Councilman Larry Williges, who is a strong supporter of the pavilion and restroom facilities, said later that the road and parking area just made sense, especially since it would allow people who are not very mobile to get to the area easier.

“I’m for it all the way,” he said. “It’s going to take a lot of money, but if they can do it right I think this has a chance to be the crown jewel of Destin.”

While Bagby supports the overall plan, he objects to a road.

“When did we put the road in there?” he said. “We talked about pavilions, but I don’t think we ever talked about a paved road there,” he said at the workshop.

City Manager Maryann Ustick said the conceptual plan had to be drafted “fairly quickly,” so the city hired a landscape architect to do it.

“There are a number of options for access to that pavilion,” Ustick said. “It could be just a multi-use trail; it doesn’t have to be a road. We decided to use the most intense option on these plans so we could always back off that.”

City Councilman Jim Wood also has reservations, but because the plan is still in a conceptual stage he said there is time for discussion.

“It seems like there should be some concerns about building a pavilion and parking area out there in an area that can be cut through by storm surge,” he said. “I would really like for us to keep our options open for now.”

As for the road, Community Development Director Ken Gallander said it’s would be on a 100-foot right of way that was dedicated to the city as part of the Pointe One development.

City members will discuss the plan during their regular meeting Dec. 17.

“We ought to preserve that point to the best of our ability,” Bagby said. “I want to see the road and the parking on the point go away.”

Destin Log Staff Writer Matt Algarin can be reached at 850-654-8446 or malgarin@thedestinlog.com. Follow him on Twitter @DestinLogMatt.

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